Buying and Selling of Small Businesses Reaches All Time High, BizBuySell Says (INFOGRAPHIC)

Driven by steady growth, sale and purchase of small businesses is on the rise, new data has revealed.

BizBuySell Q4 2016 Insight Report

According to the BizBuySell’s Q4 2016 Insight Report, transactions of small businesses have climbed steadily, with 2016 hitting an all-time record high.

Strong Sales and Rising Prices

Over the years, demand for small businesses has risen at a steady pace. In 2016, the average sale price of businesses stood at $200,000. Number of sold businesses in the same year was 7,842.

The top small businesses bought and sold were retail, including restaurants, which accounted for 43 percent. The service sector was the second most popular type of business, followed by manufacturing businesses and internet-related businesses.

Places with Potential

As for states where businesses were bought and sold the most, California topped the list with 21 percent of its businesses bought and sold that year. Next was Florida with 14 percent of he businesses bought or sold and New York where 9 percent of businesses were bought and sold that year, according to the data.

Who is Buying and Selling Small Businesses?

An interesting insight to emerge from the data is the profiles of people who are buying and selling small businesses.

Data shows small business buyers and sellers are predominantly Caucasian, college-educated married men, approximately 40 to 50 year old.

Most of these small business owners appear optimistic about the future. Seventy three percent of small business owners attributed their optimism to the expectation for real estate gains and outlook for business conditions.

To know more about how an improved business environment is contributing to the growing number of small business transactions, check out the infographic below:

Shubhomita Bose is a Staff Writer for Small Business Trends. She covers key studies and surveys about the small business market, along with general small business news. She draws on 8 years of experience in copywriting, marketing and communications, having worked extensively on creating content for small and medium sized enterprises.

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